July CTR News: Fares Resume this Month, Upcoming Training and ETC Spotlight

Community Transit sent this bulletin at 07/09/2020 06:35 AM PDT

Commute Trip

Reduction News

July 2020

Face Coverings are Mandatory

This is a friendly reminder to follow the mandatory statewide face covering order while in public and while riding public transit.

Community Transit has instituted a number of changes for the health and wellness of our riders, employees and the communities we serve, including:

Nightly disinfecting of all buses and paratransit vehicles.
Closing off seats to allow social distancing on buses.
Reminding riders to follow the mandatory statewide order to wear a face covering when using transit, DART or when vanpooling.
Requiring drivers to wear either a cloth face covering or a KN95 mask whenever anyone else is on the bus.
Asking riders to wash their hands often and to not use transit when sick.

Community Transit continues to provide essential transportation service during the pandemic. For information about Community Transit’s service and commitment to safety during the pandemic, please visit www.communitytransit.org/coronavirus.

Regional agencies adjust to a returning workforce

Community Transit resumed collecting fares on all its bus routes and DART paratransit service July 1.

In March, Community Transit temporarily suspended the collection of fares to help with physical distancing between drivers and customers at the height of the pandemic. Riders have been boarding and exiting through the middle and rear doors of the bus, except for ADA customers. The agency restored fare collection on its Swift bus rapid transit service since riders pay their fares at Swift stations, not on the bus in June.

With the restart of fare collection on all buses, drivers will wear a face covering that meets Washington State Department of Labor and Industries rules while riders are onboard and have the option to wear a face shield as riders are boarding the bus. Non-ADA passengers will be asked to exit the bus through the rear doors to prevent two-way traffic at the front. The agency is also testing physical barriers around the driver compartment as a potential future solution.

Sound Transit resumes fares on ST Express

Sound Transit resumed fare collection on ST Express buses July 1. Fare collection is dependent on the completion of safety measure being installed at the front of our buses, so some routes may continue to be fare-free until these measures are complete. Fares resumed on Link light rail and Sounder trains in June. More information about the resumption of fares can be found HERE.

Sound Transit also transitioned to a single flat fare of $3.25 for all full fare Adult riders on ST Express, regardless of distance traveled. Flat fares for ORCA LIFT, youth, seniors and riders with disabilities were implemented in July 2018. More information on the flat fare, including fact sheets in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog and Russian, are available at Soundtransit.org/flatfare.

Agencies encourage using ORCA cards to minimize contact during fare payment

Effective with the fare resumption, ORCA monthly passholders will be able get full value out of their July pass. ORCA retail outlets in Snohomish County are open to purchase July passes.

Visit www.communitytransit.org/orca for information about how to buy or load an ORCA fare card online or in-person, as well as a list of retail locations that provide ORCA services. Riders can add value to any ORCA card or purchase new adult-fare ORCA cards at ticket vending machines at Sounder train stations in Everett, Mukilteo and Edmonds.

Advanced Training Opportunities

We have some picked out some recorded programs for you to watch on your own time this month. Please complete the Advanced Training Hours Survey once you have watched a recording to get credit.

Transportation Options and When they Work Best,
This webinar discusses individual transportation options, when they may work best at your worksite and some tips for promotion. If it's been awhile since you've been through ETC Basic Training, it's a great refresher. Watch here.

New Employees - Onboarding Best Practices and Info Share
This webinar covers tips for new hires and influencing behavior change. When habits change as they have over the past several months, now is a good time to reconsider all employees as new employees in terms of transportation options. As we head back to our offices, we can create new approaches to presenting transportation information. Watch here.

Recorded Webinars from Industry Partners
Each webinar is worth 1 hour or Advanced Training Credit.

Eno Center for Transportation Road to Recovery Series: Behaviorial Science 101: How Human Decision-Making will Affect the Post-COVID World.
Behavioral scientists have been studying how people make transportation decisions and how we can get them to make choices that are better for health, the environment, and traffic safety. But how does that change during a pandemic? Dr. Ashley Whillans of Harvard Business School shares insights about behavioral principles and how they can help us prevent a massive shift to drive-alone trips, while enhancing the safe use of transit and bicycling. She’ll also share insights about how behavioral science can help people thrive while working from home and improve compliance with public health recommendations for transit users. Watch here.

Bikes Make Life Better: How to Fight the SOV Backslide
Bikes Make Life Better Director Kurt Wallace Martin shares how to help employees choose biking and other active transportation modes for their post-pandemic commute. He covers how to encourage employees to opt for active modes, how to plan for the influx of cyclists to your workplace, and ways to pandemic-proof your bike and locker room facilities. Watch here.

ETC Spotlight:
Sonya Pinkney, AGC Biologics

Sonya Pinkney is an HR Generalist with AGC Biologics, who became an ETC in February. Although she said she doesn't have a secret to the success of her program, she does have a great insight into managing a successful program.

What transportation options do your employees use most? Personnel vehicles, public transit and rideshare.

What has been your biggest challenge? For me, my vanpool from Everett is no longer available so I will need to find addition options when I go back to working in the office. Working remotely has been a challenge, but thank goodness for Zoom. I am successfully onboarding employees for two of our locations.

What advice can you give to other ETCs who may be having challenges implementing their program? If your company has a wellness committee, partner with them to help advertise (transportation options). I will be partnering with my wellness committee when the fall 2020 CTR survey goes out.

What one thing are you most proud of with your CTR program? I took the initiative to take over the CTR program when I started at AGC Biologics in October. One of my goals for 2020 following the CTR survey is to implement employer contributions toward an Orca card as many employees commute from various counties. I'd also like to partner with any vanpools in Canyon Park. I onboard all of our employees and this would be a great perk to offer.

When you’re not wearing your ETC hat, what do you like to do outside of work? I love taking walks, swimming, spending time with family especial my 16-year-old granddaughter and 10-year-old grandson. I just got back from taking them to Great Wolf Lodge, an indoor water park. We had a great time with special memories.